The following background information may present examples of specific aspects of the prior art (e.g., without limitation, approaches, facts, or common wisdom) that, while expected to be helpful to further educate the reader as to additional aspects of the prior art, is not to be construed as limiting the present invention, or any embodiments thereof, to anything stated or implied therein or inferred thereupon.
Typically, cannabis plants are grown for processing into medicinal and recreational cannabis products. The legalization of cannabis has increased the demand for higher quality cannabis products at regulated prices. Often, growers of cannabis require solutions to increase harvest efficiency while maintaining quality. The growing and harvesting of cannabis plants is a multi-step process that was traditionally performed entirely by hand.
Typically, cannabis plants can be harvested and processed to obtain numerous kinds of chemical compounds used in medical products. For example, the compound tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) can be extracted from cannabis plants. Before obtaining this desired chemical, the cannabis must, however, first be separated into herbaceous plant material, chaff, seeds, oil glands, and kief residue. This is often performed manually, which can be time consuming and inefficient.
Other proposals have involved separating and collecting parts of the cannabis plant. The problem with these separation devices and gripping devices is that they do not magnify the force applied around the hose, and they are not efficient in separating the oil glands, resin trichomes, and kief from the plant material. Also, the separation is not adjustable to allow for different sizes and shapes. Even though the above cited separation devices meet some of the needs of the market, a multi-stage mechanical process that separates cannabis into plant material, chaff, seeds, and kief; and then collects the separated cannabis byproducts based on size, shape, and weight through use of various separators, including, a screw conveyor, a mechanical vibrator, an ultrasonic mechanism, and a series of stacked classifiers is still desired.